Capital structure

As of 30 September 2020, the METRO balance sheet reports equity in the amount of €2.1 billion (30/9/2019: €2.3 billion).

The profit or loss for the period attributable to the shareholders of METRO AG leads to an increase in reserves retained from earnings of €460 million. It was mainly offset by currency translation differences in equity, particularly due to the development of the rouble, and the dividend payment for financial year 2018/19. The equity ratio stands at 15.6% (30/9/2019: 13.2%). The increased equity ratio is particularly due to the decline in total assets following the disposal of the majority stake in METRO China and the hypermarket business.

Negative reserves retained from earnings are not due to a history of loss but mainly due to reclassification of the equity item net assets attributable to the former METRO GROUP, recognised in the combined financial statements of the MWFS GROUP as of 1 October 2016, to the legally defined equity items.

An amount of €1,070 million was withdrawn from the capital reserve in financial year 2019/20. Correspondingly, this amount was reclassified to reserves retained from earnings in the consolidated financial statements.

Net debt decreased by €1.6 billion and amounts to €3.8 billion as of 30 September 2020 (30/9/2019: €5.4 billion). Cash and cash equivalents increased by €1.0 billion as of 30 September 2020 to €1.5 billion (30/9/2019: €0.5 billion). By contrast, financial liabilities decreased by €0.6 billion to €5.3 billion (30/9/2019: €5.9 billion).

The very substantial reduction in net debt is particularly due to the disposal of the majority stake in METRO China and the hypermarket business. The transaction proceeds had an impact of €2.0 billion. The attained purchase prices are fully attributable to cash, whereas the cash resources of the disposal groups were included in assets held for sale instead of in the basis for comparison of net debt. The cash of the disposal groups was also boosted by the improved business performance of the recent months.

As of 30 September 2020, METRO’s non-current liabilities amounted to €5.5 billion (30/9/2019: €5.7 billion). Financial liabilities decreased by €0.2 billion to €4.5 billion.

As of 30 September 2020, METRO’s current liabilities amount to €5.6 billion (30/9/2019: €9.8 billion). The decrease of €4.2 billion compared to the previous year’s figure is mainly due to the disposal of the hypermarket business and the majority stake in METRO China. Financial liabilities decreased by €0.4 billion to €0.8 billion, partly due to the repayment of a bond. Trade liabilities decreased by €0.4 billion to €3.2 billion, mainly due to exchange rate fluctuations, changes in payment terms and changes in purchasing volumes.

Compared to 30 September 2019, the debt ratio decreased from 86.8% by 2.4 percentage points to 84.4%. It should be noted that previous year’s figure includes current liabilities of €3.8 billion related to assets held for sale, which amounted to €7 million as of 30 September 2020.